


The Other Mandalorian

by write_my_heart_out



Series: From Clan Deshra [1]
Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: AU kind of, Bounty Hunters, Canon-Typical Violence, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, F/M, Family Feels, Fluff, Friendship, Implied Sexual Content, Mild Sexual Content, idk how else to tag this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:14:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26190067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/write_my_heart_out/pseuds/write_my_heart_out
Summary: Zhihr Deshra has known Din Djarin since they both began in the Bounty business. He's never failed to bring in a bounty.Until this... "asset" throws him off his game.It doesn't take much for her riduur to convince Zhihr to keep the little green baby, but she should have known the bounty (or lack thereof) would come back to haunt them.At least it's cute...
Relationships: Cara Dune & Original Character(s), Cara Dune & The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV), The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/Original Female Character(s)
Series: From Clan Deshra [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1901944
Comments: 1
Kudos: 15





	1. The Mandalorians

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Mandalorian, Din Djarin, or any of the characters or plot from the Star Wars universe.
> 
> Other information: The name "Zhihr" is pronounced "jeer" with a soft J sound.

"And keep a low profile, will you, _cyare_?"

A low chuckle resonated through the Mandalorian's modulator. "I'll kill less than five people. Promise."

"Din _..._ "

Din cupped Zhihr's face gently in his gloved hands and touched the forehead of his helmet to hers. "I'll see you in thirty."

Zhihr wrapped her fingers around his wrists. "Fine. But bring this one in alive, okay? We need the credits."

"Sure thing, _meshurok._ " Din ran his thumb over her cheek before letting her go so he could get his job done.

Zhihr pushed her choppy blonde hair out of her face and tied it up behind her head so she could finish fixing the hyperdrive. Maybe having the ship to herself wouldn't be so bad since she could play whatever music she wanted and get her work done without Din around, possibly distracting her. Yeah, Din Djarin, a distraction. She almost laughed at the thought.

.oOo.

Some conversation outside caught Zhihr's attention, and she leapt to her feet from her bunk in search of her silver helmet. Din and the captive were back earlier than expected, which meant that a few people had probably died.

"Hey, it's time to go. Let's settle up!" said a cruiser driver outside. After a pause, he continued, "I'd stay off the ice if I were you." The speeder drove off.

A new, trembling voice said, "You think there's really something to worry about?"

Zhihr climbed down to the cargo bay to collect the Mythrol so Din could get the ship going when the same voice began to scream, "Open the hatch! Open the hatch!"

Zhihr rolled her eyes. The hatch was already open, and Din was already inside, but the blubbering, blue buffoon hadn't noticed. As cracks made their way towards the _Razor Crest_ , Zhihr grabbed her _riduur_ 's arm so he could yank their captive inside. Just in time, too. The head of a nasty beast latched onto the landing gear of the ship only half a second after they were all safely inside. Well... definitely not safely, but at least inside.

Zhihr pushed the bounty out of the way and further into the body of the ship so they didn't lose him, and he followed Din into the cockpit saying, "Dank Farrik, that was close! Oh my God... Oh my God..."

She didn't get the rest of what he said because she was too busy shooting the teeth of the monster on the ship, but she could tell he was going to be chatty until they froze him up.

Oh, she got a good hit in! Right in the eye! But when the ship jumped into the air, free of any extra-heavy passengers, her right foot slipped and she fell-

Zero feet and zero inches, thanks to the pair of sturdy arms around her waist. Din pulled her back in, sealing the hatch behind her, and pulled her into his arms for a moment. "Don't fall," he chided quietly.

"Shut up." She gripped the fabric of his clothes. "How's the bounty?"

" _Kaysh mirsh solus,_ " Din grumbles.

Zhihr chuckled and tapped her helmet with his. "Aren't they _all_ idiots?"

Din made a noncommital sound and nodded before he let his arms drop from her waist so he could turn his attention back to flying the ship. He froze when he saw the Mythrol in the door of the cockpit, smiling like a... smiling like something stupid, which he was. Din's fists clenched. He didn't like it when people he didn't know knew who or what he cared about.

"You two are cute," the Mythrol said stupidly. "And, uh, I like your ship. She's a classic. _Razor Crest,_ am I right? Pre-empire?"

The two Mandalorians said nothing.

"I have a lot of credits, by the way," he continued. "That's why I offered to hail a Cruiser."

Din didn't bother responding and pushed past the captive so he could fly the ship. Zhihr turned on her heel, her red cape billowing behind her dramatically, and made her way down to their weapons array to restock her ammo. She'd used a ton of it while shooting blindly at the animal on the landing gear.

When she returned to the others, she heard, "Is it true that you guys never take off your helmets?"

Din didn't respond, as per usual when piloting with a bounty on board, and Zhihr smiled to herself, knowing that was always one of the first things captives asked before they were shoved into the carbon freezers. The answer wasn't a simple "yes" or "no." Different clans had different rules about Beskar and helmets and weapons and the like. Din's clan didn't take off their helmets but to eat, sleep and shower, and the helmets were not allowed to come off in the presence of another living thing unless that living thing was your _riduur_ for "certain intimate activities." Zhihr's clan, Clan Deshra, had less strict rules about helmets; your family and close friends could see your face, but your red cape always stayed on no matter what you wore unless to clean it or to sleep (and the cape was thick enough to be used as a blanket, so some Mandalorians of Clan Deshra slept with the cape). Clans like Clan Wren and Clan Visla and Clan Fett only required the wearing of the helmet during battle and ceremonies.

When the Mythrol slipped out of the cockpit to "find the vacc tube," Zhihr swiftly took her spot back, knowing it would remain free from now on.

Zhihr lay back in her seat and closed her eyes, tired from a good day's work. " _Cyare,_ why don't we get paid extra for the talkative ones?"

"I don't know, _M_ _eshurok_."

"How long do you think until he finds the others?"

Din's chuckle was soft. "I give it a minute."

Din was right, of course; in just about a minute, the Mythrol stood frozen in a case of carbonite.

Zhihr stood in the doorway with her helmet off, waiting for Din to come back up so she could hug him like she hadn't been able to before. When she saw him, she spread her arms open, and he obliged, stepping into her armoured embrace. In her three-inch heeled boots,* they stood at almost the same height, so she set her chin comfortably on his shoulder. She sighed with content. Hugging Din was so secure and comforting, all the tension in her shoulders melted away and she closed her eyes, perfectly fine with falling asleep in his arms.

Realizing this, Din unravelled his arms from her torso and set his hands on her hips. "Zhihr..."

She sighed and pulled away from Din reluctantly. "I know. Cuddles later, though."

Din nodded slightly, then sat back in his pilot's seat while Zhihr lay back in her own chair, just about ready to fall asleep.

And she did.

.oOo.

Din let Zhihr sleep through the bounty exchanges to return to the _Razor Crest_ with the information on the new asset. When Zhihr woke, Din gone, she made her way down to the Clan underground to wait for Din. He would page her when he was done with his business.

Zhihr took to cleaning off and polishing her Beskar while talking to a few foundlings. She didn't take off her helmet, as was the Way with this clan, but she could tell the children stories about her travels with Din mask on or mask off.

"Did you catch him?" asked a smaller Foundling, probably a girl.

Zhihr nodded. "I did. It wasn't easy, though. The Hutts always have the most difficult bounties for us. They do pay well, which I'm thankful for."

"Were you there when General Leia Organa killed Jabba the Hutt?" asked a taller boy.

Zhihr shook her head. "No, unfortunately, but I would have paid a lot to see it happen. Jabba the Hutt was the nastiest of all the Hutts. I'm glad he's gone." She strapped her shin guard back onto her leg and took off the metal at her thigh. "It's always dangerous though, hunting. Never try to track a bounty down unprepared. That's the easiest way to die."

The familiar rhythmic thumping of thick boots caught Zhihr's attention, and she stood to meet Din, who tucked his hand around the back of her helmet to knock their foreheads together in a short Kedlabe kiss. The Foundlings behind Zhihr scurried away, knowing when they were wanted around and when they weren't. "What are you doing here?" she asked softly.

"Beskar. Down payment. We'll leave at 0600 hours."

She smiled under her helmet. His official voice was so gruff and attractive, she wanted to yank both of their helmets off right now and slam him into the wall behind her, but she restrained herself for a whole bunch of obvious reasons. "Come get me when you've finished. Do you have a puck?"

"Not for me. But I have one for you. He's in the Naboo system." Din set a bounty puck in Zhihr's hand and squeezed her fingers. "Do you want to take the _Crest_?"

Zhihr shook her head. "No. I'm good. I'll hitch a ride with one of my girls."

Din nodded and set off to the armourer.

Zhihr tucked the puck into her pocket to open somewhere private.

.oOo.

Zhihr's Twi'Lek friend, Hera Syndulla, had been easy to get a hold of since she wasn't doing much after the war ended. They made it safely onto the planet, but maybe if the Naboo system wasn't so calm, the appearance of a Mandalorian wouldn't have sparked so much fuss. "What are they doing here? Why has a bounty hunter come to Naboo? Is there another war?"

Every time Zhihr heard a whisper about her, she couldn't hold in a groan. Hera would chuckle each time.

Jacen Syndulla, who Zhihr hadn't seen in three years and had grown since then (he was six years old now), seemed very proud to know someone of the Mandalorian type, and every time they passed someone new, he'd say, "This is my Mandalorian friend! She's so cool! She's gonna pick up a bounty right here on Naboo!"

It didn't help Zhihr's sparkling popularity much.

They made it to Sector Nineteen before Zhihr's tracking FOB began to beep wildly, and Zhihr took off down the street.

Hera, with Jacen on her shoulders, laughed. "Mandalorians. Always in such a rush."

Jacen laughed. "I think she's super cool."

"Me, too."

Zhihr's Trandoshan quarry spotted her moments before she spotted him, but as soon as he sprinted off, she grabbed a cargo dolly, punched the anti-grav, and zoomed smoothly after him. She remembered the cool days when her mother would stand her on a hoverboard and push her down their street, her youngling Beskar enough to protect her from a fall. Now, in her heels, her center of gravity moved, so she had to work extra hard to keep her balance. Unfortunately for the bounty, Zhihr had it under control. As she got closer, she recognized more and more of the gross Trandoshan's face; all green and wrinkly with a huge jaw littered with sharp, yellow teeth. Zhihr made a face. She hated Trandoshans; they always tried to steal her pucks.

The quarry seemed to realize he wasn't getting away pretty quickly, so he started spitting deals out for her.

"I'll give you fifty-thousand credits! I'll give you double what they're paying you!"

Zhihr scoffed. "As if. You can't even pay your own debt, much less get out of a bounty right now." She raised her arm and let her grappling hook fly free. It whipped around the Trandoshan's torso and arms, and he let out a _squawk_ when she yanked her arm back and he tumbled to the ground. Zhihr hopped off the dolly and planted her boot on the quarry's back. "Why Naboo? Why not somewhere rough and rowdy where it would be harder to find you? You go around bothering these nice people, and for what?" When the captive didn't answer, Zhihr chuckled. "Well, thanks for making this easy for me, anyway."

.oOo.

Unfortunately, Hera didn't have a carbon freezer, so a tranquillizer every few hours would have to do until Zhihr could get a hold of one. Jacen was glad to take the job.

Zhihr slouched in the chair next to Hera's and slipped off her helmet, letting her wavy hair settle around her shoulders. It was undeniably messy, probably the worst helmet hair she'd had this cycle, but she didn't care.

Hera glanced over at her. "You know, I'm not an expert on Mandalorian culture, but are you guys not allowed to use hairbrushes?"

"That's rich, miss Twi'Lek," Zhihr grunted. "You don't even have hair. You can't insult mine."

Hera laughed. "There's probably one of Jacen's in the 'fresher room."

"Thanks." Zhihr made her way to the refresher and brushed her hair out easily. When she sat back down in the cockpit, Hera announced that they would be arriving on Nevarro within the next ten minutes.

As soon as Zhihr closed her eyes, however, a transmission from the _Razor Crest_ itself beeped through.

"It's your man," Hera announced.

"Oh, goodness." Zhihr put him through. "What's up, _cyare_?"

Din sighed. "Hey. Uh... I'm stuck. Jawa's destroyed the _Crest_. It'll take me a few rotations to put back together."

"Woah, woah, woah. What do you mean, destroyed?"

Din sighed again. "They took it apart. I got the parts back, but I won't get back to Nevarro today."

Zhihr nodded. "I'll pick up a few more jobs in the meantime, then?"

"Okay. _Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum._ "

Zhihr smirked. " _Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum, balyc_." She shut off the transmission.

Hera began the descend. "So will you be staying with us for a little while longer?"

Zhihr nodded. "Appears so, my friend."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:
> 
> Riduur = spouse  
> Cyare = darling/sweetheart  
> Meshurok = gemstone (used here as a pet name)  
> Kaysh mirsh solus = he's an idiot (literally: his brain cell is lonely)  
> Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum = I love you  
> Balyc = too, also
> 
> *Zhihr's heels are basically a handmade pair of Beskar-steel triangular frames magnetically attached to the bottoms of flexible leather boots. The frames look kind of like wedges, but the middle is carved out with just a diagonal spoke for support. She can slip them off and attach them to her utility belt if she needs to sprint, fight or do anything else that requires full flexibility. The boots themselves were engineered by a friend to accommodate use both with and without heels.


	2. The Child

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This happens during the episode "The Sin," which is after the actual episode called "The Child" because this chapter is when Zhihr meets the child, so it just kind of makes sense (to me).

A day after Hera left, Zhihr spotted the familiar shape of the _Razor Crest_ flying into the atmosphere before Din patched her to tell her he'd arrived on the planet with the quarry. Actually, he didn't patch her at all. Zhihr made her way to their ship in a power walk, her path perpendicular to Din's, and he hadn't spotted her yet.

"I see you fixed-" She froze. "Is that a _child_?"

Din stopped, and the cradle following him froze, too. "Species age differently," he said slowly. "He's fifty years old."

Zhihr tilted her head to the side coming closer. "So that's the quarry? The one that took you days to capture? A baby?" She crossed her arms. "Is that even legal?" Her eyes drifted down towards the small green thing in the cradle, who examined her closely with a smile. She didn't know how to feel about the small thing, so she didn't say anything more, but it didn't seem to realize what danger it was in. Guilt stabbed her chest. It was just a kid. _No, stop thinking,_ she thought quickly. _Don't catch feelings._

Din scoffed. "What about any of this is legal?"

He had her there. "Fine. Whatever. Just get it done... then I'll meet you down with the Clan so I can brief you on our next bounties." Zhihr wrapped her hand around the back of her _riduur_ 's helmet and touched their foreheads together. Din returned her gesture. "See you, _cyare,_ " she said quietly.

"If I'm not back by 0800 hours, come looking for me." He let go when she nodded.

.oOo.

Zhihr had never realized how quickly 0800 hours had come before. When it did come, Din walked straight up to the cockpit and started the ship up.

Zhihr followed but stayed her distance for a moment. She knew Din wanted to get off this planet as soon as possible, meaning not talking until they reached hyperspace. But when he reached for the leaver, he froze. He'd never froze before.

"Din?" Zhihr asked softly. She clutched her helmet to her side. "What are they going to do with the child?"

Din picked up the ball from the leaver and examined it. "I don't know." He twisted it back into its rightful place and pushed the leaver forward.

Zhihr settled into her seat, ready to punch it and keep an eye on the modulators in case she needed to perform an in-flight repair. She'd done three maintenance runs on the ship, just in case Din had fixed the _Crest_ incorrectly, and once she was satisfied with the work, she'd added a few new toys in from her most recent bounty travels (including a small mirror she'd swiped from a noblewoman's shower room). Before any other switches were flipped, however, Din powered the whole ship down.

Zhihr relaxed, letting loose the tension in her shoulders she hadn't even known were there. "What are you doing?" she asked, but she knew the answer.

Din stood and tapped the helmet in her lap. "It's my foundling. Rightfully."

Zhihr swallowed down her nerves. " _Rightfully_."

"C'mon."

"But... we're not allowed-"

"Zhihr." A plea just barely slipped through the modulator of his helmet. Din held out his hands, asking her to come with him. "I'm going."

Zhihr bit her lip. "Nice whistling birds, _cyar'ika_." She said quietly. But she took a deep breath and stood, setting her helmet behind her and taking her _riduur_ 's hands.

.oOo.

Zhihr didn't show off her Beskar in the village. She couldn't; two Mandalorians in town at once would draw too much attention, so instead, she covered herself with a scarf, hood, and visor, her cape wrapped around her shoulders and over the rest of her torso to keep her armour hidden. A multitude of weapons hung all around her body in easy-to-reach places. Din lead her down a small alley, around a building, and up to the back entrance of where Zhihr assumed the child had been brought.

Din held out his hand, and she saw the familiar small cradle buried in a heap of trash. "We have to be quick," he whispered.

Zhihr nodded. "Go around front. Get the front guards out of the building."

"What about you?"

"I'll kill them, get in, and kill the rest of them."

"And I'll get the kid."

Zhihr nodded and let her cape fall over her back, revealing two knives strapped to her biceps and a small blaster hooked to her waist along with her blue breastplate. She detached the heels from the souls of her boots, and the fabric reconfigured itself to form a regular, tough boot. She strapped the heels to her belt. "Patch me when you get it, then I'll shoot your way out."

Din nodded. They split.

Zhihr climbed to the top of an adjacent building and waited for Din to lure the troopers out. She shot them immediately, then jumped down to the ground and slipped in the door, killing two more immediately. The sound of a wall being blown open made her roll her eyes. Din was one for the theatrics, for sure. At least it would distract the troopers from her location, but it was Din's job to get the child, so maybe he should have let her draw the attention.

She nearly made it to a grand room (grand for the size of the place, at least) without any encounters, but four troopers met her at the door. "Ooo, fuck," she muttered to herself. Then, to the troopers, "This is truly unfortunate. My condolences."

She pulled out two blasters and shot them all two at a time before they could even say, "Drop your weapons!" She set her blasters right back into place and brushed her hands together.

Zhihr ran to the other side of the room, hopping over a body, and shot two more stormtroopers right at the junction of the next corridor. Two hallways down, a glint of shiny Beskar caught her eye, and she spotted Din slinking his way out of another room with a bundle in his arms. He motioned for her to get going, so she turned around and pulled out her best dagger.

At her shoulder now, Din whispered, "I thought you were shooting my way out."

"Shut up," she hissed.

A door at the end of the hall opened, and the pair ducked behind a wall. When the trooper rounded the corner, Zhihr stabbed him up the opening in his helmet. He didn't even get a chance to scream. When another appeared, Din reached for his blaster, but Zhihr refused his help.

"Keep your eye on the kid," she hissed.

In the next room over - the grand-ish room - Zhihr paused to look at the child, who reached for the scarf around her neck. "Hi, little one," she muttered.

But just as they reached the other door, it opened to three troopers; three more trickled in at the other. She would have shot them immediately if not for the kid, knowing they would return fire and undoubtedly miss their targets, as seemed to be Stormtrooper custom.

"Freeze!" said one.

"Don't move," ordered a second.

"Hands up!" said the first.

"Drop the blasters!" said another.

"Wait," Din interrupted them. "What I'm holding is very valuable. Here." He began to kneel down, and Zhihr slowly knelt beside him and set her blasters gently on the ground. Din set his blaster down, then the baby. He touched his finger to the back of Zhihr's boot, saying, _don't move_.

"Now turn and face me!" said the first trooper impatiently.

Din's left hand curled into a fist, and he activated his whistling birds.

"Stand up," the trooper demanded.

Whistling darts bolted through the air and landed in the chests of troopers before Zhihr could crack a smile of realization. The troopers fell. Din gathered the child into his arms, and it cooed. Zhihr poked its nose playfully.

They made their way safely out of the building, and Zhihr climbed up to the roof of the adjacent building again and followed Din and the child just steps behind them. As Zhihr had expected, FOBs all around them activated. Zhihr crept along the roofs a bit faster to keep up with Din unseen in the dark now. More and more bounty hunters gathered around Din and the child, and Zhihr discreetly unclipped two blasters from her belt. They grew closer and closer to a clearing of buildings where the marketplace usually set up and where Zhihn was sure everyone would gather. She glanced down at Din and the child, unsurprised to see his hand at his own small blaster.

Zhihr was right. Bounty hunters with raised weapons ambushed them and surrounded Din and the child. They stopped. Zhihr crouched on the rooftop.

"Welcome back, Mando!" Greef Carga announced. "Now put the package down."

"Step aside," Din countered. "I'm going to my ship."

Carga nodded disbelievingly. "You put the bounty down, and perhaps I'll let you pass."

Din honourably refused the offer. "The kid's coming with me."

"If you truly care about the kid, then you'll put it on the speeder, and we'll discuss terms."

Zhihr shook her head. These people had no compassion. That was one thing she liked best about her Mandalorian; he didn't only care about money or reputation. He'd been even more willing to take the kid in than she had, and Zhihr had been thinking about taking in their own foundlings for _years_.

"How do I know I can trust you?" Din asked.

Zhihr took aim at Carga out of sheer spite until she heard his next words: "Because I'm your only hope."

Din moved to the speeder slowly. Zhihr knowingly glanced down at his fingers for a mark.

_4..._

_3..._

_2..._

_1..._

A fist: _Go_.

Zhihr blasted two bounty hunters in the face at the same time. She rolled off the building, landing directly in front of the speeder and Din. She continued to shoot less carefully, aiming for anything that moved. Din jumped over the speeder's cargo, and Zhihr followed almost gracefully.

"It's the Red Knight!" someone yelled. "It's teamed up with the Mandalorian."

Zhihr popped up manically and shot some more. "You're all screwed now!" she shouted like a lunatic for effect.

Din grabbed the back of her cape and yanked her back down. "Could you not?"

"I'm just having fun, _ner cyare_." She popped up less dramatically now and genuinely shot at one of the hunters, killing them, and she ducked down again.

"Why did I agree to marry you again?" Din wondered. He checked on the kid, who was definitely no longer asleep, but fairing fine.

"Because you love me." She ducked around a container and shot another hunter in the face.

Din hit the speeder. "Drive!" he growled. Unfortunately, the astromech droid refused. Din held his blaster up to the droid and repeated himself. With his digital life in danger, the droid finally complied, and the speeder moved. Shots fired from every angle kept Zhihr's head down, but Zhihr fired back as swiftly and accurately as she could. Din sat up to help, but she pushed him back down.

"No! Your priority is the kid." A shot from above caught her attention, and she killed the bounty hunter immediately. She caught the body as it fell and tossed it between the speeder and the rest of the hunters so it would take a few bullets. "I hate tracking FOBs!"

Din grunted in agreement.

Zhihr was about to say something else when a blast to the astromech interrupted her and the Speeder stopped. She swore. " _Dinuir ni gar ram'ser,_ " Zhihr whispered. Din slowly handed over his rifle and covered the baby's body with his. Everything was quiet for several minutes. And it was still quiet... and still... then Zhihr positioned the weapon and fired.

A shooter on the roof disintegrated. She cocked the gun and took aim again. _Boom_ , gone. Then a Rodian. When she took aim again this time, however, she got no clear shot. Everyone had hidden behind something. If she fired again, she'd be wasting valuable ammo. She pulled back and glanced at Din as if to say, _your turn for a brilliant idea_.

As it appeared, Greef Carga was ready to hand an idea right over. "That's one impressive weapon," he called, his voice clearly wavering.

Din put a hand on Zhihr's shoulder and lifted his head a small bit to address the crowd of hunters. "Here's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna walk to my ship, with the kid, and you're gonna let it happen."

Greef Carga stepped a little further out. "No. How about this? We take the kid, and if either of you tries to stop us, we kill you and we strip your bodies for parts."

A dull thunk of a foot on metal spurred Zhihr into action, and she launched herself at a bounty hunter behind her, zapping it with the end of Din's fancy rifle and shooting the other twice in the head with her own blaster. Another shower of blasters rained down over them, and though Zhihr would have loved to fire back, she couldn't let herself get hit.

Chancing it, Din picked himself up and threw flames around their small hideout. It kept the hunters at bay for a few seconds, but his fuel ran out after a full sweep of the perimeter. With the element of surprise on her side, Zhihr shot two more hunters before they started shooting back. She sank down again to ask something of Din, maybe to form a plan, but she froze when she saw him bent over the child. She wanted to tell him it would be okay, but he would hear right through her lie. She couldn't tell him anything reassuring without lying now. The noise and ruckus around them softened to a dull whir in the back of her mind when she set her hand on Din's shoulder carefully. She wished things could be different. Maybe that they'd come across their foundling somehow else-

The familiar sound of Mandalorian jetpacks yanked Zhihr back into reality, and she smiled. "Kriff yeah, baby!" she said exuberantly.

A dozen Mandalorian warriors soared over rooftops and slew the hunters below as though they were ants. The pair watched for a moment, and Zhihr took three deep breaths to gather her wits about her.

"Stay with the kid," she ordered.

"Why me?"

"You found him!" Without another word, Zhihr leapt to her feet and tore off her scarf and hood, finally revealing herself to be Mandalorian as well. Cries of fear bounced off the walls symphonically, and Zhihr laughed like a madwoman. "What did I tell you, eh?"

Except she didn't even have to raise her weapon. The Clan had the hunters outnumbered, and half of them were already dead.

Kampoa, a large warrior with a heavy machine gun, landed next to them. "Get outa here. We'll hold them off."

Din stood hesitantly. "You're going to have to relocate the covert."

"This is the Way," Kampoa assured them.

Din and Zhihr nodded. "This is the Way," they agreed.

Din gathered the child into his arms, and Zhihr watched his six the whole way to the ship. A shot nearly passed her, but being the impulsive shit she was, she reached out her right arm to block it and it landed right in the middle of the flesh of her forearm. She yelled in pain but bit her lips shut to draw less attention.

" _Meshurok,_ what happened?" Din called behind him.

"Keep going, _ner cyare!_ I'm fine!" She wasn't, but they had to get out of here as soon as absolutely possible. She turned and ran faster to catch up with Din, which was a mistake, she realized when a blaster shot hit the back of her calf. She swore again and fell just at the bottom of the ramp of the _Crest_ , but turned back and shot the assailant in the forehead.

" _Meshurok!_ " Din halted, already inside.

"I'm coming. Get this thing going, _cyare._ Now _._ "

"But-"

"NOW!"

Din, upon the realization that Zhihr wouldn't take no for an answer, turned and headed deeper into the ship. Zhihr crawled soundlessly up the ramp, only able to fully use two limbs.

A foot on the ladder made her freeze. Greef Carga dropped down into the cargo bay. "Hold it, Mando." Din halted in his tracks and turned slowly. "I didn't want it to come to this. But then _you_ broke the Code."

Zhihr raised her good arm and aimed her blaster at Carga's back. "No one threatens my husband like that, you greedy piece of shit." She waited for Carga to turn, so he could see her before she killed him, and fired. His body dropped and rolled down the ramp, and Zhihr rolled out of the way to let it go. She crawled the rest of the way up the ramp painfully and leaned against the wall.

"You're not fine."

"So I noticed." Zhihr slammed her hand on the button to close the hatch. "Give me the kid and get us out of here."

"Oh, now you want it?"

Zhihr reached her hands out - her good hand, really. "I'm half-dead. Gimme."

Din relented and gently set the kid in her lap so he could get them off the ground.

Zhihr crossed her good leg slowly to hold the kid in place and took her helmet off. "Hi, _verd'ika_."

The Child reached its hand out to touch her, and she reciprocated the movement, brushing the tips of her gloved fingers against his. It smiled a bit and examined her face intensely. After a moment of assessing Zhihr's face, the Child stepped up onto her legs and leaned into her body, spreading its arms out like a hug. Zhihr sucked in a breath and wrapped her arms around it in return, biting her lip to keep her excitement inside.

Zhihr glanced up at the ladder, then back down at the Child. "Wanna go see your _buir_?"

The Child cooed, probably not understanding what she said, but liking that she was talking to it. Zhihr chuckled and ducked her arm beneath the Child's legs, pulling herself up carefully. She made it painfully up the ladder to the cockpit, and the Child's grin when he saw Din made any slight suffering worth it. She set the kid down, and it waddled over to Din's side.

Zhihr leaned against the doorframe. "Where to?"

Din sighed. "You're way too stubborn."

"Uh-huh. So, you got an answer for me?" She shuffled over to her seat and dropped down, pulling the knot out of her hair once she settled.

"Nope." Din glanced down at the Child, who now reached for the little ball at the end of the leaver. Din unscrewed it and dropped it into its waiting hands. The Child giggled.

As Din raised the _Crest_ higher into the atmosphere, the Child waddled back to Zhihr, and she picked it up to set it in her lap, this time with its back against her belly. She did that so naturally, and the Child seemed to be completely okay with that. Her stomach twisted into affectionate knots.

" _Kaysh cuyir aliit,_ " Zhihr decided softly as they jumped into hyperspace.

Din nodded. "Yes. It is."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mando'a Translations:
> 
> Cyar'ika = beloved  
> Ner = my  
> Dinuir ni gar ram'ser = give me your sniper/rifle  
> Verd'ika = little soldier (in this context), used as a pet name for children  
> Buir = mother/father (there are no gendered terms in Mando'a)  
> Kaysh cuyir aliit = they are family

**Author's Note:**

> Translations:
> 
> Riduur = spouse  
> Cyare = darling/sweetheart  
> Meshurok = gemstone (used here as a pet name)  
> Kaysh mirsh solus = he's an idiot (literally: his brain cell is lonely)  
> Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum = I love you  
> Balyc = too, also
> 
> *Zhihr's heels are basically a handmade pair of Beskar-steel triangular frames magnetically attached to the bottoms of flexible leather boots. The frames look kind of like wedges, but the middle is carved out with just a diagonal spoke for support. She can slip them off and attach them to her utility belt if she needs to sprint, fight or do anything else that requires full flexibility. The boots themselves were engineered by a friend to accommodate use both with and without heels.


End file.
